Hospitality sector should retain employees
Thusith Samaraweera , Chairman IH
The Institute of Hospitality Sri Lanka International Branch had its 27th AGM recently at Ramada Colombo and veteran hotelier Thusith Samaraweera was re-elected the Chairman for the 3rd consecutive year.
The Chairman expressed his thoughts on the prevailing situation in the hospitality sector and emphasised that the industry should retain their employees and survive the coming months, managing the situation effectively.
‘The global travel guide book The Lonely Planet named Sri Lanka as the top tourist destination in the world for 2018/2019 and following the very sad and unexpected incidents that took place on Easter Sunday, the arrival of tourists to SL is at its lowest, and the hotel sector is currently facing a serious crisis. As a result, the projection made by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority to expect 4.0 million tourists this year will be only a vision.'
‘We may consider this slack period as the perfect opportunity to provide further training in areas where staff would benefit, in order to improve their skills, knowledge and confidence. The importance of having committed and well trained staff can never be over – emphasised. Limited time for staff training is always a factor, but it should never be over-looked.”
Chairman, Samaraweera further highlighted that the Institute of Hospitality has decided to conduct several training programmes - mainly focusing on topics such as motivation, leadership, maintenance, crisis management, innovation and creativity.
'This initiative would help in retaining the most valuable asset of our industry- our employees and we are looking forward to educating more people through our expertise membership' Chairman stated.
Chairman Samaraweera stated that IH has decided to conduct several training programmes